Secret Women's Business

Chapter 1: Isobel and Helena

Isobel had always been an early riser. A morning schedule that was predictable and consistent, Issy enjoyed her brisk 40-minute walk to campus. Student housing that was overcrowded and bustling often meant that she and best friend Helena, who worked night shift at an inner city restaurant to support her nursing studies, shared bathroom time. As time went on, Issy and Helena enjoyed their ad-hoc catch-up, girl's time, in the bathroom. Secrets were shared.

Isobel knew that October 4th 2025 was a special day for both she and Helena, for entirely different reasons.

Issy sat on the edge of the bathtub and pumped Lavender Body Lotion into the palm of her right hand. She drew breath and smiled. Lavender's aroma took her back to childhood, in the garden with her Mum. Every year on October 4, they would pick and strip garden lavender stalks and fill muslin bags with lavender seed. An enduring gift for Nan, on her birthday.

Helena smiled at her friend's intriguing silence. 'What are you thinking about?'

Issy told her about their annual lavender harvest on Nan's birthday. 'It was all she ever asked of me,': Isobel's heart smiled. 'Nan always acted surprised when we gave her the lavender bags, but she knew what our gift would always be.' Issy cocked her head to the right, happy to have shared her story. It was a simple memory and a simple gift that spanned time and bonded generations.

Helena loved honesty. 'Your Nan must have loved nature and her own garden. Sounds like a really special gift, one that she could rely upon.'

'But it's kind of weird' ...Isobel thought out loud.

'How so'?

'Well, I mean,' Issy pondered, 'we spend so much time trying to find 'the perfect gift' for family and friends, but all Nan wanted was the same thing, year after year.'

'Yeah, but there is something strangely comforting about consistency,' Helena could be insightful. A student nurse, Helena loved people and strove to discover a person's hidden layers. She loved these end-of-day conversations with Issy.

Helena, was on a roll. 'It may have been the same gift every year but it connected your Nan to the two of you, to your life and garden. Lavender reminded her of you both, just as its smell, reminds you of her. Real love is reassuring.'

Issy felt it. Conscious that she was sharing bathroom space with her friend and her bottle of lavender lotion that connected to her grandmother's love. Conscious that just as her own day was starting, Helena's day was closing. Conscious that another year had passed. Conscious that October 4th would always be her Nan's birthday. The lavender on her own skin assured her.

'I've been with David for a year now and I still don't know whether or not he loves me,' Helena confided.

'How do you feel when you are with him 'in the moment'?' Isobel had been dying to ask. Today was Helena's 1st anniversary with the ever-enigmatic David.

Helena faked shock: 'Issy, are you suggesting that I overthink love?'

'Hell yeah!' Issy laughed. Issy worried that Helena spent so much time listening to others and attending to their every whim, that she sidelined her own needs.

'How do I feel when I am with him?' Helena reflected as she massaged her body lotion, Arnica and Ylang Ylang into her tired, tight calf muscles. Muscles tired from night shift, tight because her own body was crying out for loving attention.

Helena felt her own deep, nurturing touch and allowed herself to dream. She was transported: walking, side-by-side with David, in an open park. 'I feel understood when we are together. In those moments, I do not feel like running away. I think that's what frightens me,' she turned her gaze to Issy.

Issy took her time. Helena's fear-admission had caught her off-guard. 'Then don't think.'

Helena smiled softly with light in her eyes. Helena knew she would receive peace that night, in her sleep.

Issy embraced her new day. She called her Mum who was already in the garden picking and stripping lavender stalks as she would always do, on Nan's birthday.

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